4 Oklahoma Sooners earn NFCA All-American honors

USA Today

28-05-2025

4 Oklahoma Sooners earn NFCA All-American honors
The Oklahoma Sooners have had a banner year on the diamond as Patty Gasso's squad won their first SEC title and made it back to the Women's College World Series for the ninth consecutive time. Amid a season of turnover, Oklahoma was buoyed by its youth.
After playing key roles in last year's national title run, sophomores Ella Parker and Kasidi Pickering have been instrumental in the Sooners' return to Oklahoma City. After leading the Sooners lineup to the conference title and sweeps in the regional and super regional rounds, Parker and Pickering were named first-team All-Americans by the National Fast-Pitch Coaches Association on Wednesday.
Along with their first-team selections, transfer pitcher Sam Landry, another key component to Oklahoma's success this season, was selected to the NFCA's second team. True freshman Gabbie Garcia was selected to the third team after a huge season for the Sooners.
Hitting out of the one and two holes for the Sooners' vaunted lineup, Pickering and Parker have provided power and an on-base prowess that's helped set the table for the younger players like Gabbie Garcia and Nelly McEnroe-Marinas hitting behind them.
In the leadoff spot, Pickering's hitting .413 with 18 home runs and 56 RBIs. She leads the Sooners with a .557 on-base percentage and has walked a team-leading 51 times. Parker leads the Sooners with a .416 batting average with 13 home runs and 46 RBIs as the Sooners' primary No. 2 hitter.
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In the circle, Landry solidified any concerns for the Sooners, racking up a 23-4 record with a 1.92 ERA. She's recorded 170 strikeouts in 167.2 innings pitched. She's thrown 16 complete games this season and has won each of her last five starts, including all three of the regional round. In Landry's last outing, she threw a complete game shutout against the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Garcia earned third-team honors after a tremendous first season in Norman. She leads the Oklahoma Sooners with 20 home runs and 58 RBIs. She had just one home run in Oklahoma's first 16 games. Since then, she's hit 19 home runs in the Sooners' last 47 games. At shortstop, she's been fantastic with just three errors all season and boasts a .982 fielding percentage.
The Oklahoma Sooners will get their Women's College World Series underway on Thursday when they take on the Tennessee Volunteers in Oklahoma City.
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